Emergency dental symptoms
Lost filling or crown: what to do and how quickly it needs fixing
A filling or crown that has come out is rarely painful straight away, which is exactly why people leave it. The tooth underneath is softer than you think. Here is how to protect it.
Clinically reviewed by Dr Ibraheem Ijaz, Principal Dentist · GDC 301711 · Last reviewed April 2026
Why fillings and crowns come out
A filling almost never fails on its own. It is the tooth around it that changes. Decay creeps in along the join between filling and tooth, softening the dentine the filling was sitting on until there is nothing solid left to hold it. A crown is different: it is held by a layer of cement thinner than a sheet of paper. Once saliva finds a way under one edge it slowly dissolves that cement, often over years, until something sticky such as toffee or a caramel finally lifts the crown off.
Decay under the edge of the filling.
A piece of tooth breaking off with the filling.
Cement washing out under a crown.
A post crown coming loose.
A temporary filling or crown wearing out.
Does a lost filling need same-day treatment?
Within the week.
Call today.
Same day.
A&E.
Protecting the tooth until you can be seen
- Keep the filling or crown, rinse it clean and bring it with you. A crown can often be put straight back on.
- Plug the hole with a temporary filling kit from a chemist (usually a zinc oxide paste), or with sugar-free chewing gum pressed gently in. Both keep food out and calm the sensitivity.
- If the crown sits back on the tooth cleanly, you can hold it in place with a smear of toothpaste, denture fixative or a temporary cement kit from a chemist. Never use superglue. If it feels loose, take it out before you sleep so there is no risk of inhaling it.
- Rub a little sensitive toothpaste onto the exposed area and leave it. Avoid ice-cold drinks, sweets and anything sticky, and chew on the other side.
- Rinse with warm salt water after eating to keep the hole clean. Paracetamol or ibuprofen as directed on the packet if it aches.
Our guide to temporary fixes before your appointment goes into more detail on what works and what does not.
Replacing the filling or crown at Deepcar
The emergency examination is £30 including X-rays and takes about 15 minutes. We look at what is left of the tooth, feel the floor of the hole with a probe to check for soft decay, cold-test the tooth to confirm the nerve is healthy, check that a returned crown still fits, and take a digital X-ray to see whether decay has spread under the old filling or towards the nerve. Then we agree the repair and its price in writing, and in most cases do it there and then.
- Permanent filling the same visit. Decay is cleaned out and the tooth rebuilt with a white filling (£150–£220) or a silver filling (£120–£160). Most lost fillings are sorted this way in one appointment.
- Emergency temporary filling. If the tooth needs a root canal first, or the appointment is a short evening slot, a temporary filling seals the tooth until the proper repair.
- Recementing the crown. If the crown fits and the tooth under it is sound, we clean out the old cement, check the bite and cement the crown back on, usually in the same visit.
- A new crown. If the old one no longer fits, or the tooth broke with it, we rebuild the core and fit a temporary crown while the new all-ceramic crown (£750–£1,000) is made.
- Root canal or extraction. If decay has reached the nerve, root canal treatment (stage 1 from £200, completed from £450) comes before the filling or crown. If too little tooth is left to build on, extraction (£120–£260) and a conversation about replacing it.
Visits after 6pm on weekdays and at weekends carry an additional out-of-hours charge. Our emergency dental fees page sets out how it works.
| Treatment | Fee (from) |
|---|---|
| Emergency examination including X-rays | £30 |
| White filling | £150–£220 |
| Silver filling | £120–£160 |
| Recementing a crown | priced at the visit |
| All-ceramic crown | £750–£1,000 |
| Root canal treatment | £450 |
What happens if the gap is left open
Dentine is far softer than enamel, and once it is exposed decay moves through it several times faster. A hole that needed a £150 filling can reach the nerve within months, at which point the choice becomes a root canal or an extraction. Food packs into the gap and inflames the gum beside it, and the sharp edge ulcerates the tongue or cheek.
A tooth that has lost its crown has a different problem. The prepared stump is thin, and biting on it unprotected can snap it off at gum level, which usually means the tooth is lost. Meanwhile the teeth either side lean into the space and the tooth opposite over-erupts into it, so that within a few weeks the original crown no longer fits and a new one has to be made. Ten minutes of recementing becomes two visits and a new crown.
Questions, answered
Common questions
Can the same crown be put back on?
Often, yes, if it still fits snugly and the tooth underneath is sound. Bring it with you. If the crown came off because of decay under it, or the tooth broke, a new crown is needed.
Why is the tooth so sensitive to cold air now the filling has gone?
The filling was covering dentine, which is full of tiny fluid-filled tubes running to the nerve. Cold air makes that fluid move, and the nerve reads the movement as pain. Covering the dentine stops it almost at once.
Can a lost filling be replaced in one visit?
Usually. If the nerve is healthy and there is enough tooth left, we clean out any decay and place a permanent filling at the emergency appointment. A crown or root canal needs a second visit.
Is a lost filling a dental emergency?
Not usually a same-day one, unless it hurts or a crown has come off. It does need seeing within a week or so, because exposed dentine decays quickly and the tooth can break further while you wait.
What can I use to cover a lost filling at home?
A temporary filling kit from a chemist, or sugar-free chewing gum pressed into the hole. For a crown, a smear of toothpaste or denture fixative holds it for a day or two. Never use superglue on a tooth.
How much does it cost to replace a lost filling or crown?
The examination is £30 including X-rays. A white filling is £150–£220, a silver filling £120–£160, and a new all-ceramic crown £750–£1,000. Recementing an existing crown is priced at the visit and agreed before we start.
In pain? Don’t wait
Same-day emergency appointments, seven days a week.
£30 emergency examination including X-rays. Call now and a real person answers, or grab a slot online.
334 Manchester Road, Deepcar, Sheffield S36 2RH · Free parking